Welcome back to another edition of the Roos Lets Loose monthly mailbag, where I answer your fantasy hockey questions by giving advice that should be useful to all poolies even if they don't own the specific players being discussed. As a reminder, if you want your fantasy hockey question(s) answered in the next mailbag, check out the end of the column, where I explain the ways to get it/them to me as well as the details you should provide when sending. The earlier you send a question the more likely it is to be included in the mailbag, and the deeper dive I can provide with my reply.

Question #1 (from Guilaume)

I'm in a 12-team, points only, keeper cap league. I need to drop 2 of my top 6 point-producing forwards, 1 of my top 3 point-producing defenseman, 1 of my top 2 goalies and 1 of my 2 smallest salaries, plus 3 other players, for a total of 8 drops. Here are my options:

Top 6 F: Kaprizov, Barkov, Guentzel, Trocheck, Fiala, Konecny 

Other F: RNH, Perfetti, Vilardi, Knies, Quinn, K. Johnson and Lekkerimaki

Top 3 D: Matheson, Carlson and Weegar

Other D: Dunn, Jiricek

Top 2 G: Bobrovsky, Rittich

Other G: Daws

Lowest Salaries: Woll, Perfetti/Quinn (tied)

My questions for you are

-Outside of Kaprizov, Barkov and Guentzel, who would you keep between Trocheck (great chemistry with Panarin), Fiala (he never has first-line deployment) and Konecny (who I feel could score more with a decent PP in PHI). I am thinking to also keep RNH, Quinn, Knies and Lekkerimaki.

-Would you keep Vilardi over Perfetti? He is 2 years older but I feel Perfetti is not progressing well, and was scratched from the playoff roster.

-I plan to keep Matheson; so for the other spot would you keep Carlson over Weegar even though the Caps are likely to continue to do worse?

-Is Woll worth keeping over Perfetti or Quinn for my lowest salary? I thought he was becoming the #1 in Toronto but he lost his edge after his injury and I wonder if he will ever be in a #1 role.

-Who would you say has the highest upside between Perfetti, Knies, Quinn and K. Johnson, and who has the lowest?

For the first question, the reality is Trocheck has never put together two top-tier seasons in a row. Beyond that, he plays a rough and tumble style that has led to many similar players scoring much less and/or getting injured much more frequently starting at the age he is now. As you noted, the difference is Artemi Panarin, whose career has consisted of him not only doing well, but bringing the best out in his linemates. Trocheck indeed has thrived in this scenario. Plus, Trocheck has a locked in spot on one of the top PPs in the league. He's a definite keep.

The question is whether Guentzel is too. He looked just so-so in the playoffs; but once he inks a UFA deal I strongly suspect he'll get all the ice time he can handle. I think that gives him an edge over Fiala, who's consistent but offers little realistic upside, or Konecny, who is very good but seems like he's not cut from more than a point per game cloth, if even that. I also don't like that Konecny is pretty weak on the PP, with it seemingly being as much as a "him" problem as a team problem from where I sit. Your must keep forwards indeed are the three you listed, plus Trocheck, making Fiala and Konecny the drops.

The Vilardi vs. Perfetti question is a toughie. Vilardi produced a lot better, but he also had vastly superior deployment and ice time. With the Jets reportedly shopping Nicolaj Ehlers, both stand to benefit, although it was well known to poolies – especially those who owned Ehlers – that he was not given a true chance to shine. Although one fewer top six caliber forward is normally a benefit to those who remain, in this case it's unlikely to be a boon to either player. Still, it could result in Perfetti being able to cement a spot in the top six and climb to or above 16:00 per game, while Vilardi was already getting 17:00 per game and seeing nearly two-thirds of his team's PP time. I feel like Winnipeg will be careful with Perfetti, bringing him along steadily but perhaps more slowly than his owners would like, as the ultimate goal is for him to slot in as a #1 center once Mark Scheifele slows.

I agree on Matheson, as although in a recent Goldipucks column I said he's likely to do worse, he's still your best option. For the other, I like Weegar, who is arguably "the guy" on Calgary now that Noah Hanifin is gone. His Q4 numbers, i.e., after Hanifin was traded, were superb; and, perhaps most importantly, it was him running PP1, where he posted six PPPt in his last 11 games. Carlson was a top tier d-man, but Weegar projects to be better now given his situation and age. Carlson is the drop.

For your lowest salary, I don't like the idea of dropping Perfetti for the reasons I noted above. While it is always nice to be able to keep goalies due to home run potential, the reality is no Leafs netminder has been a great fantasy own in a very long time and I struggle to see how one will be even if they do blow things up. Woll would be the lowest salary drop for me.

For the long term, I've already discussed Perfetti. Knies might become great, but I feel he's overhyped due to his team, plus, as a larger sized player, may take longer to thrive. Also, even if the Leafs do blow things up and Knies gets a bigger role, chances are the offense would take a hit, so it would be a mixed blessing so to speak. Johnson has looked pretty good, and crushed it in the AHL this season, such that a return there seems unlikely. The Blue Jackets could be a very good team down the road, but perhaps quite a bit down the road. As for Quinn, I really like that he fared quite well after missing a huge chunk of the season. That's something veterans even have a tough time doing, and he does have the issue of a crowded group of Sabres forwards. Still, I think Quinn is well on his way to showing he's the cream of the young crop. I'd rank them as Quinn, then Perfetti and Johnson are neck and neck, then Knies.

You didn't mention goalies, and I'm not wild about walking into the season with Bob and Rittich. Are trades possible? Can they include players you have to drop? My guess is no, since that would make it too easy to circumvent things. But you're not doing your team any favors with Big Save Dave as a second goalie. The required drops are Fiala, Konecny, Carlson, and Woll. The other four should be Daws, who I see as no better than a depth goalie, Lekkerimaki, as why keep him when he can be redrafted, plus Jiricek for the same reason. The last drop is much tougher. If it were me, I'd shop Knies or Johnson, plus Carlson, in an attempt to get a better second goalie. If that fails, the one good thing about Rittich is he'd be an easier drop in order to play the rotating second goalie carousel. Good luck!

Question #2 (from Mathieu)

I won my points only keeper and hope to repeat. The specifics are 13 teams, 20 player active line-ups (12 F, 6D, 2G) with a salary cap (AAV) of $105M for the active players and $125M for the entire team. Each team keeps 10 roster players and 5 farm players. Farm eligibility is lost once the player reaches certain career or single season thresholds; for forwards it's 75 career points or a 50 point season, for defensemen it's 50 career points or 35 in a season, for goalies its 35 Career Wins or 25 in a season.

Ideally I'd like to keep 5F, 3D, 2G, as I that led me to success, so why tinker? Here are my options:

F: Connor Bedard, Jack Hughes, Elias Pettersson, Sidney Crosby, Clayton Keller, Patrick Kane, Filip Forsberg, Trevor Moore, Matias Maccelli, Anthony Duclair, Casey Mittlestadt, Philip Kurashev, Brad Marchand 

D : Miro Heiskanen, Morgan Rielly, Thomas Harley, Shayne Gostisbehere 

G : Juuse Saros, Thatcher Demko, Logan Thompson

Farm : Connor McMichael, Logan Stankoven, Easton Cowan, Pavel Dorofoyev, Jonatan Berggren, Dustin Wolf

My questions are (1) who would you keep for my ten roster players and five farm, and (2) I feel like Forsberg doesn't make the cut as a keeper for my team, but other GMs are seemingly not interested, so should I just let him go, or is he a keeper?

I think if you're going to stick with your proven recipe of keeping 5F, 3D, 2G, then your D and G keeps are pretty cut and dried, as it'd be Heiskanen, Rielly, Harley, Saros and Demko. Without PPPts, Ghost is inferior to Harley even now, and especially considering future potential. For the farm, I'd probably cut one of Dorofeyev or McMichael, neither of whom has really impressed. At least McMichael seems to be getting looks in the top six, so I'd cut Dorofeyev loose.

Forward locks are Bedard, Hughes, and Pettersson. Then it boils down to Crosby, Forsberg, and Keller. This is tough, because I think the Pens will do everything they can to ensure Crosby breaks Wayne Gretzky's record for most career point per game seasons. Also, once Jake Guentzel left, Crosby ignited, seemingly as he realized he needed to carry the team on his back. I like that Crosby's SOG rate was his highest since 2016-17, yet his SH% didn't suffer. I think he is one of the two other forward keeps.

As for the others, Keller is a very good player and his future seems quite bright. In particular, his IPPs, both overall and on the PP, have been rising each of the past three seasons and were both over 80% for 2023-24. I realize the reaction to seeing that is they can only go down; however, if they're going down, that probably means more points are being scored, and he'll benefit from that, for a wash. I also think the Yotes will be a lot better come 2024-25, finally with the ability to get some expensive talent to plug into the line-up. It's difficult not to pick Forsberg either, although for what it's worth he has yet to string together two great seasons, where in his two standout campaigns his points per 60 was 3.6 and the other it was 4.0, yet otherwise he's been under 3.0 in all but one campaign. Keller does get more ice time, which should continue.

I think in the end you say you want to win again; so on paper, Forbserg gives you the better chance of doing so than Keller. Who knows – if you dangle Keller as a trade chip then maybe the other GMs, who you indicate were only lukewarm at best on Forsberg, will be interested? Plus, you are built so well for the future with Hughes, Bedard, and EP40, the prospect of losing Keller, who is four years Forsberg's junior, is less worrisome. Good luck!

Question #3 (from DobberHockey Forums)

In a points only, keep ten league starting 9F, 3D, 2G, who would you keep from this list: Nathan MacKinnon, Kirill Kaprizov, Tim Stutzle, Kyle Connor, Travis Konecny, Johnny Gaudreau, Nazem Kadri, Cale Makar, Zach Werenski, Brock Faber, John Carlson, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Alexandar Georgiev and Filip Gustavsson?

I count fourteen players, meaning we need to find four drops. Normally I'd recommend keeping either one or no goalies, but if it's a points only league then likely goalie categories are W, OTL, and SO, and Vas and Georgiev, being high volume starters, are gold. I think you keep both and then not worry about goalies during the draft. That makes Gus the first drop.

Who, though, are the three skater drops? I think the contenders are Konecny, Gaudreau, Kadri, Faber and Carlson. Right off the bat I'm not keeping either of the two d-men. Carlson is starting to look his age, as his SOG and scoring rates are trending way down. I also think it's become more obvious now that he was benefitted by the high-octane offense in Washington during his prime. Inasmuch as he's slowing just as the team around him is starting to do worse is a bad combination and does not bode well for a rebound. As for Faber, I realize he's a Calder nominee and had the highest TOI/game of any rookie defenseman since that stat was charted back in 1997-98; however, I believe he benefitted from the fact that Jared Spurgeon was out nearly all season. Also, when the Wild escape from cap hell next summer, one of the likely items on their shopping list is a true PP QB. Although many look at Faber and see the next Drew Doughty or Duncan Keith, I'm thinking more like Detroit era Filip Hronek or Cam Fowler, and that is not enough to cut it as a keeper given that defensemen comprise only 25% of starting skaters.

Who, then, is the forward cut? I think it's Gaudreau. Oh how the mighty have fallen. But I feel like his effort level has been weighed down since his wallet got a lot fatter, and the surrounding team is not doing him many favors. Plus, Kadri really came into form as a #1 center after Q1, playing better than point per game hockey, and Konecny, although likely not projecting to be better than a point per game player, is still someone who at this stage can be counted upon more so than Gaudreau, plus is nearly four years younger than Johnny Hockey. The drops are Carlson, Faber and Gaudreau. Good luck!

Question #4 (from Doug)

I'm in a 12 team full keeper, where each team rosters 25 players (10F/5D/2G/8 bench) plus has 6 minors spots. For skaters it's points-only league, plus 10% PIM. I am still very much in a rebuild mode having finished in last but with 8 picks in the first two rounds this year and likely to get Celebrini. But to make room for incoming draft picks I need to drop at least two F and a one D. Here's my roster:

F: Connor Bedard, Nick Suzuki, Quinton Byfield, Anton Lundell, Marco Rossi, Kaapo Kakko, William Eklund, Casey Mittelstadt, Kirby Dach, Bobby Brink, Barrett Hayton, Peyton Krebs, Jakob Pelletier, Owen Tippett, Connor McMichael

Minors F: Matvei Michkov, Ryan Leonard, Frank Nazar

D: Luke Hughes, Rasmus Sandin, Calen Addison, Juuso Valimaki, Erik Brannstrom, Scott Perunovich

Minors D: Lane Hutson

My thinking was for the F drops it'd be two of Krebs, Hayton, and Pelletier, while for D it'd be one of

Brannstrom, Addison or Valimaki. Do you agree, and if so, which would you drop?

Looking at forwards first, why is Kakko not a drop candidate? After a couple of seasons of improvement and ending 2022-23 with 32 points in 57 games, he faltered, as New York shot 6.6% at 5×5 with him on the ice this season. His overall IPP isn't terrible, but he continues to not shoot much and struggled (3 points in 21 games) despite his most frequent linemates in the first half being Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. Yes, he was the second overall pick, is still only 23, and might be a player who breaks out closer to game 400 due to his larger frame; but more and more he's reminding me of Jesse Puljujarvi, to whom many clung to hope until finally it became clear that he was never going to connect the dots.

But is Kakko one of your two "worst" forwards? You mention Krebs, Hayton and Pelletier. If this was last season I'd have added McMichael; but he does seem to be in the top-six mix now with the Caps, so he probably should be kept. I'm keeping Hayton too, as although Logan Cooley looms, and the team is likely to spend more not to bring in top talent, that will either mean better players alongside him or he gets moved to a team where he can presumably thrive. We saw what he could do in 2022-23, when he finished with 18 points in 20 games. Krebs is a tough drop given a new coach coming in plus the exodus of Casey Mittelstadt. Is there a chance Krebs ends up being used in more of a bottom six role? Yes; but Buffalo is shaping up to be very good, so Krebs is enticing. That leaves Pelletier, who shined in two seasons in the AHL but has looked outmatched when in the NHL. Yes, he's undersized so it could take him to game 400 to truly break out, and your team is in no rush to win. Still, I think Pelletier and Kakko are your two "worst" forwards and your safest drops.

On D, 27 of Addison's 46 points over the past two seasons have come on the PP. That is not going to cut it in the NHL, especially given how infrequently he shoots and his atrocious minus rating. I think there is a non-zero chance he is out of the NHL within two years, although also a non-zero chance he somehow connects the dots and thrives. That's not to say Brannstrom has done much better; but at least in his case his path has been blocked by other d-men. Brannstrom is an RFA this summer, so we'll see if Ottawa still has plans for him. Even if they move Jakub Chychrun it wouldn't be a much better situation as it had been before Chychrun arrived, as now Jake Sanderson is in the mix. I suspect Brannstrom will be on another team in the fall, and could still have it in him to play well. Valimaki was supposed to use his 14 points in his last 22 games with the Yotes in 2022-23 as a springboard to success in 2023-24. But that didn't happen, as Valimaki's PP time dropped with each passing quarter. He's also never had anything hear decent IPPs, and is the oldest of the three. I think it's either Valmaki or Addison as the drop. Although I think Addison is the far bigger risk, he also offers at least a glimmer of high reward, whereas Valimaki seemingly is not going to make the leap. In the end I'm dropping Valmaki. Good luck!

Question #5 (from George)

I'm in a 12 team, keep 7 plus one "rookie" (25 years old or younger and fewer than 25 career NHL games) roto league with rosters of 2C, 2LW, 2RW, 4D, 2G, 6 Bench and with categories of G, A, PIM, SOG, PPP, HIT, and BLK. Goalie stats are W, GAA, SV, and SV%. After winning two seasons ago, I'll be entering year 2 of a complete rebuild, with no other team really rebuilding. Knowing this, who would you keep among the following players: Connor Bedard, Logan Cooley, Alexis Lafreniere, Trevor Zegras, Lucas Raymond, Juraj Slafkovsky, Luke Hughes, Owen Power, Jake Sanderson, Moritz Seider, Matty Beniers, Leo Carlsson, Adam Fantilli, Zach Benson, Ryan Leonard, Matvei Michkov, Lane Hudson, and Pyotr Kochetkov? For what it's worth, I'm leaning Michkov as my rookie keeper. The rest, other than Bedard of course, are open for debate.

While clearly you know what you're doing, having won the league, I fear you may have gone too "all in" regarding a rebuild. Or to put it another way, you have a wealth of promising prospects, but you can't keep them all. This makes it so you're forced to think of things like upside and who will break out when. Ideally when rebuilding, you want to still have a few "here and now" players, or at least some who've got more games under their belt than most of these options. That's because not only does it make your decisions easier, but it also gives you a chance to keep selling at strategic intervals.

The good news though is you say there are no other teams currently rebuilding. Given that, and with only 216 players are owned, it means many of those you toss back will be there for you to draft yet again. That will be a factor influencing my views.

The first thing I'd do is indeed land on which "rookie" you'll keep. With news that Michkov's arrival in the NHL might be imminent, he's probably the right one to keep. But Hutson is a tough one to lose. I think you should be able to move him, as although chances are every team has one "rookie" eligible player, if not more, few likely hold the promise of Hutson. I wouldn't trade him alone, as it would be better to package him with one or more other players.

One who I'd trade is Laffy. I realize he might be a spot on PP1 away from becoming very good; but that spot will be hard to get when there are four forwards entrenched on that unit and it was the third best in the NHL. Think of him as Nicolaj Ehlers 2.0. Moreover, the forward – Artemi Panarin – who happens to be the best of the four and, arguably, the key to Laffy having made the strides he did, could be gone by 2025-26. Test the waters on moving Laffy.

I'd keep both Raymond and Seider. I realize Seider is playing very tough minutes and his "new car smell" is wearing off. But the Wings had a 9.6% 5×5 SH% while he was on the ice, despite him starting a measly 38.7% of his shifts in the offensive zone. He also managed to tie for 19th in PPPts despite taking the ice for the 29th most PP minutes. With Shayne Gostisbehere likely headed to a new team as a UFA, Seider should be handed the PP reins. Sooner than not I see him being in the same class as Miro Heiskanen as a young, all-around top tier D-man. Raymond, after a somewhat slow start, was a point per gamer in the second half. Both hold tremendous promise, but also have shown enough to be more proven then some of your other potential keeps, so I'm holding them.

I'm also keeping Trevor Zegras, as dating back to 2000-01 the list of centers who had 23+ goals and 61+ points in at least two of their first three seasons, and with a hockey age of 21 or less (last season Zegras was considered 21 because his birthday was after February 1st) were Sidney Crosby, Auston Matthews, Elias Pettersson, Connor McDavid, Sean Monahan, John Tavares, Steven Stamkos, Jonthan Toews, Anze Kopitar, and Evgeni Malkin. All those players shined, some longer than others, but that, coupled with Zegras ending 2024-25 with six points in five games and being just at his breakout threshold, is enough to make you need to keep him.

You also need to make room for Slafkovsky, who by Q4 was nearly a point per game player, and this from someone many thought might not do that well until closer to 400 games due to his size. He is clearly connecting the dots and the Habs, like Anaheim and Detroit, should be a team on the rise.

Inasmuch as keeping Bedard is a given, that leaves two more spots. With d-men being 40% of your active skaters, I think room has to be made for two of Hughes, Power, and Sanderson. The first, for me, is Sanderson, who made strides and should thrive once handed the keys to the PP kingdom and Ottawa improves as a team. The second is tougher. Hughes did quite well, but that was in the absence of Dougie Hamilton, who is too expensive for the Devils to likely be able to trade, plus looming is Simon Nemec who was a second overall pick. I fear Hughes will be deemphasized, and at worst could be Will Butcher 2.0. Plus, Buffalo isn't paying Power what they are without the intent to feature him very prominently. I'm not saying he displaces Rasmus Dahlin from PP1; but he will get prime minutes and might be the Nicklas Lidstrom to Dahlin's Brian Rafalski or Ryan Suter to Dahlin's Roman Josi.

I realize by keeping the players I suggested, you're letting go of several top prospects. But my guess is since no other team is rebuilding you can redraft many of them. I also think these keepers not only are the right choices, but will allow your team to emerge from its rebuild sooner. Do try to trade Hutson and Hughes in particular, as they should command a decent return, as might Kochetkov. Good luck!

Question #6 (from another Andrew)

I’m in a 12 team full roto keeper with a roster maximum of 23 and minimum of 20 (12 F, 6D, 2G), plus up to 8 farm players on ELCs or yet to make their NHL debut. Salaries are the same as NHL contracts and our cap is also the same as the NHL's, with none of the farm players' salaries counting against the cap. Skater scoring for forwards is one point each for G, A, SHP, GWG, and OTP, 0.5 for each PPT, 0.1 for each SOG and Hit, and -1 for each PIM, while for defensemen, two points each for SHP and OTP, 1.5 for each G, 1 for each A, PPPt and GWG, 0.1 for each SOG and HIT, and -1 for each PIM, while for goalies it's five points for any G, two points for each W, A, and SO, one for each OTL, 0.08 for each SV, and -1 for each L and GA. Players on ELCs can be moved to and from the main roster up to five times, after which they'd have to clear waivers.

I also have the following picks in upcoming five round Entry draft for farm eligible players: 11th, 12th, 13th, 17th, 18th, plus I have three first round picks in the pro draft that will be held in October. The October draft is usually filled with expensive players, but decent value can be found, as exemplified by Pavel Zacha, Mike Matheson, Joseph Woll, and Cam Talbot last season. There is also another draft in January, and I have two first round pick there, but at most that draft has one or maybe two players worth grabbing. Also, every week there can be pick ups, but only among players who've been waived the previous week.

I’m the defending champion and would like another win before needing to rebuild due to salary issues I'm likely to encounter after next season. I looked more closely at positional points, and in doing so realized that of the top 100 only 3 drafted goalies made it. The best was 87th and most were around 200. I also know that after the top 50 defensemen, their points get pretty similar. Because of this, I decided to take a risk and trade Jake Oettinger in an attempt to use his salary get better skaters. But even after that, if I keep my roster fully intact, and depending on what my RFAs sign for, I might have as little as $3M to spend on drafted players. Here is my roster as of the end of last season and after having traded Oettinger:

F- Kyle Connor, Pavel Buchnevich, Zach Hyman, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Evander Kane, Alex Tuch, Carter Verheaghe, Tommy Novak, Mattias Maccelli, Quinton Byfield, Arthur Kaliyev, Gabriel Vilardi, and Jakob Pelletier

D- Roman Josi, Josh Morrissey, Shea Theodore, Evan Bouchard, Conor Timmins, Calen Addison, and Ville Heinola

G- Logan Thompson, Dustin Wolf

Farm (ELC and unsigned rookies):

Mason McTavish, Cutter Gauthier, Danila Yurov, Jonathan Lekkermaki, Nickolai Kovalenko, Zack Bolduc, Emil Andrae, and Lane Hutson

What would you do if you were in my situation? Players I'm thinking of trying to trade are Maccelli, Novak, and Kane.

By my count you have 22 players on your main roster, so you could do nothing. But I like that you're not content just coasting off your win. Let me say first that I fully believe this team is capable of another win, if not two. In other words, you need not consider a rebuild just yet, especially with so many first round picks in the pro draft and the fact that gems can be mined there. Of course for you to take them you'd have to make it work from a salary cap perspective, and that would mean, as you noted, trading at least a couple of players.

For trading, I think you want to keep Kane, as he gives you four players on the Oilers. Yes, he was a disappointment; however, he's come to life somewhat in the playoffs and I believe he will get a long look this fall. Yes, he's boxed out of PP1; however, if RNH or Hyman, who you also own, get hurt, he could step in, to your benefit. In short, the more Oilers skaters you won, the better.

I am unsure about trading Maccelli. I don't love his ice time, OZ%, and lack of PP scoring/opportunity; but he finds a way to score. There is a risk that he gets deemphasized if the new ownership opens its wallets. But he's inexpensive for what he brings to the table. As for Novak, if you can trade him then by all means do so, as after a splash in 2022-23, he came back to earth. Still, he's not paid much either.

The player first on my list to trade is Tuch. I think he is going to be pushed aside by the young crop of Sabres forwards. He's also a Band-Aid boy. His 2021-22 success is still likely fresh enough on the minds of the other GMs in your league such that you could find a taker, especially since he's not paid that much, albeit more than Novak or Maccelli.

You also have four d-men who scored at a 70+ point pace last season, which is amazing. You may think I'd use that as an excuse to say you should trade one; however, I'm not sure that is true. Keep in mind that Theodore might get moved, and on a new team could really ignite. Still, like Tuch he's a Band-Aid boy, so if a d-man is to be moved it might be him. Wait until he does get traded though, as once that occurs his value will spike. Or you can hold pat, settle on trading Tuch, and aiming for inexpensive players at the October draft. After all, you have McTavish and Hutson, both of whom could be viable players for you this season, and help you cap-wise. Good luck!

Question #7 (from Nicholas)

I'm in a 14 team H2H multicat dynasty league, and have finished dead last two seasons in a row. And while I don't mind being patient to ensure a successful rebuild, I wonder if I should be approaching the rebuild differently. The specifics of the league are 47 players with a maximum of 27 players who have 100+ games of NHL experience. Starting lineups are 4C, 4LW, 4RW, 6D and 2G. Categories are G, A, Pts, +/-, PPP, PIM, SOG, FW, Hits, BLK, W, GAA, SV, SV%, SHO.

I'm at a point where I don't have many older guys left to trade but I a lot of great prospects. Should I just wait for them to develop? I tried to acquire other elite prospects and young NHLers with my great prospect depth but no one wants to trade down because the minors spots are not that deep. Here is what my team looks like as of now. At minimum I have to reduce my roster size – whether by trades or drops – before next season to be compliant, and we've already done our 2024 draft.

F – Marco Rossi, Barett Hayton, Kirby Dach, Jesperi Kotkatniemi, Connor McMichael, Cole Sillinger, Joel Farabee, Ross Colton, Kaapo Kakko, Jack Quinn, Alexander Holtz, Garnet Hathaway

F (Minors eligible) – Adam Fantilli, Will Smith, Macklin Celebrini, Dalibor Dvorsky, Xavier Bourgault, Chaz Lucius, Oliver Moore, Pavel Dorofeyev, William Eklund, Jakob Pelletier, Colby Barlow, Berkly Catton, Jacob Perreault, Danila Yurov, Rutger McGorarty, Connor Zary

D- Jusso Valimaki, Rasmus Sandin, Cam York, Kayden Guhle

D (minors Eligible) – David Jiricek, Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger, Simon Edvinsson, Artyom Levshunov, Zeev Buium, Lukas Dragicevic, Mikhail Gulayev, Seamus Casey

G – Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, AlexNedeljkovic

G (minors eligible) – Justus Annunen, Hugo Alnefelt, Dylan Garand, Topias Leinonen, Erik Portillo, Ruslan Khazheyev

First and foremost, I'm trying to avoid trading any minors eligible players. Yes, many of them will not pan out and you might have been able to get something for them now, versus nothing later. But the more you keep the better the chances of success you have of reaping benefits. Beyond that, I think you have at least four pretty easy drops from your non-minors players.

First on that list is Nedekjkovic. He's not a terrible goalie by any means, but he's 28 years old and has faltered when given the chance to be even a 1B, as he's failed to reach even a 50% Quality Start % in any of the last three seasons. With as many players owned as there are, maybe you can find a person to take him off your hands. If not though, drop him and don't give it any pause.

The second drop is Hathaway. I get that he is a big producer of PIM and HIT, but you're in a rebuild and he's 32 years old. Once you're good enough to contend he's likely going to be winding down if not out of the NHL entirely. But with his jaw dropping PIM and HIT stats, plus a few points here and there and even some SOG, you should find a taker for him.

As just as was the case in response to a question above, Kakko should go. He really is looking more and more like Jesse Puljujarvi at this point, and many a poolie held Pool Party for years hoping that he'd pan out, only to see it never happen and then be stuck with him after his trading expiration date. That date is nearing for Kakko, but given the high profile team he plays for and his 40 points in 2022-23, I think you will be able to find a taker for him.

The last cut is toughest. Although I think you might have "worse" players to cut on D, you also have fewer options there. I think you cut yet another forward. To me it's Colton or Kotkaniemi. Colton is a decent player and there is still a chance he somehow can find a spot in the top six for Colorado, what with Jonathan Drouin unlikely to be re-signed and Valeri Nichushkin perhaps not returning. In the end I'd let Kotkaniemi go. He's had ample opportunities in enough seasons to suggest he probably is never going to connect the dots. I realize he's still only going to turn 24 this summer, and he might get bought out such that he gets a fresh start on a new team; but he just does not seem to have the drive to succeed, barely shooting and only once in his entire career having a team 5×5 SH% over 8.0%, and that was only 8.4%. Simply put, he's an inhibitor of, rather than contributor to, offense happening. If it was me, I'd let Kotkaniemi go, as Colton could hit the jackpot in Colorado, plus even if he doesn't we saw from this season he can still score 40 points.

In short, the players that should go are Nedeljkovic, Hathaway, Kakko, and Kotkaniemi. Do try to trade each one; however if you fail, then drop them and move on. Good luck!

For those reading this now, it's never too early to start providing me with mailbag questions, which you can do in one of two ways: (1) by emailing them to [email protected] with the words "Roos Mailbag" as the subject line, or (2) by sending them to me via a private message on the DobberHockey Forums, where my username is "rizzeedizzee".

When sending me your questions, remember to provide as much detail about your league/situation as possible. Examples of things I need to know include what type of league you're in (i.e., limited keeper, dynasty, or one-year; roto vs. H2H; auction – if so, what the budget is – or non-auction), how many teams are in the league, does the salary cap matter, how many players are rostered (and of those, how many start at each position as well as how many bench and/or IR spots there are), what categories are scored and how are they weighted, plus other details if pertinent. If your question involves whether to pick up or drop a player, give me a list of top free agents available and let me know if the number of pick-ups is limited or if there is a priority system for pick-ups. If you're thinking of making a trade, it would be good to know not only the roster of the other team you might trade with but also where you stand in your categories. If your question involves keepers, in addition to giving me the options for who to keep, let me know if offseason trading is allowed and to what extent it is a viable option given your league. In sum, the key is to tell me enough for me to give you a truly proper answer, and for readers of this column to benefit from the answer/advice I provide. When in doubt, it's best to err on the side of inclusion since I can always omit or disregard things that don't matter.